European Union vs Ireland: Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP)
Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP) over time
- European Union
- Ireland
How they compare
Ireland currently reports 4.4% against -2.7% in European Union, a difference of 7.1%.
That makes Ireland's figure about 1.6 times European Union's.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 52 shared years of data; in 1973 it was European Union ahead.
European Union ranks 8th and Ireland ranks 10th of 26 groups.
Across the 6 decades both report, European Union averaged higher in 3 and Ireland in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | European Union | Ireland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | -1.4% | -5.6% | 4.2% | European Union |
| 1980s | -2.8% | -7.3% | 4.5% | European Union |
| 1990s | -2.8% | -0.7% | 2.0% | Ireland |
| 2000s | -1.7% | -0.9% | 0.8% | Ireland |
| 2010s | -2.2% | -6.6% | 4.4% | European Union |
| 2020s | -4.1% | 0.3% | 4.4% | Ireland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher net lending (+) / net borrowing (-), European Union or Ireland?
- Ireland, at 4.4% against -2.7% in European Union as of 2024.
- What is the difference in net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) between European Union and Ireland?
- 7.1%, with Ireland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for European Union and Ireland?
- 52 years are reported by both, from 1973 to 2024.
- How do European Union and Ireland rank globally for net lending (+) / net borrowing (-)?
- European Union ranks 8th and Ireland ranks 10th of 26 groups.
- Where does this data come from?
- Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Net lending (+) / net borrowing (–) equals government revenue minus expense, minus net investment in nonfinancial assets. It is also equal to the net result of transactions in financial assets and liabilities. Net lending/net borrowing is a summary measure indicating the extent to which government is either putting financial resources at the disposal of other sectors in the economy or abroad, or utilizing the financial resources generated by other sectors in the economy or from abroad. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.